The Long Drive Home
by Miss-evil-lil-elf
Summary: Alright, so usually I stick to Harry Potter fanfiction because that tends to be my strong point, but, I just HAD to write one, even if it sucks, to test and expand my fanfiction writing abilities :  After 'Truman's Last Chance" Derek's POV
1. Chapter 1 the beginning

Summary: Alright, so usually I stick to Harry Potter fanfiction because that tends to be my strong point, but, I just HAD to write one, even if it sucks, to test and expand my fanfiction writing abilities :)

Aright kiddos, this one is a Dasey fic. I've always wondered what happened between the party and when Derek and Casey got home on "Truman's Last Chance" and well, here's what I think happened, or what would have happened if I had any say so. Sorry if this sucks, but it's my first tv show fanfic. Whether I write more tv fanfics is up to how many reviews I get. This is a one-shot, but I'm a Dasey kinda girl and I'm not opposed to writing others. Review and tell me if I should continue or should just stick with my Harry Potter fanfic bubble :)

Disclaimer: Nope, last time I checked, I was just a person sitting at a computer, typing up and reading fanfics for sole entertainment only. I'm unfortunately just not clever enough to come up with Life With Derek haha.

"GET ON WITH IT!" geize, alright already. No tomato throwing!

Derek's POV:

"You're home now, Vicki. Get out," I say, annoyed. I don't know why I'm allowing myself to show anger in Casey's defense, but, can't help it. It's too late. Vicki gets out of the car and slams the door on Prince and I grimace, clutching my hands on the wheel tighter so as to keep my mouth shut. Suprisingly, I didn't have to say anything. Casey did for me.

"Vicki, stop slamming the car doors! It's not yours to destroy. Not that it would be the first time you destroyed something that wasn't yours, but still!" Vicki rolled her eyes, but said nothing, stomping up the driveway to her house. We watched her to make sure she went inside, then I put the car in reverse and back out into the street. I glance over to Casey, who's biting her lip, trying not to cry because she knows I don't do tears. For some reason, though, I don't think I'd mind too much. What that piece of shit did? Inexcusable. What her slutty cousin did? Just as bad, if not worse.

As I drive down the road, I steal one more glance at her and I notice a single tear roll down her cheek. Still biting her lip, she turns her head and quickly wipes away her tear to try to hide it from me, but another just took it's place. When she tried to repeat the process, I grabbed her hand to stop her. I pulled off the road into a gas station and parked. When I turned to face her, she had a guilty look on her face and I couldn't figure out why.

"Casey-"

"I'm sorry! I'm really trying not to cry!" She quivers, just barely choking down her tears.

"Casey, why? That scumbag may not be worth crying over, but you're obviously hurting," I try to sooth her.

"B-but you don't do tears, re-remember?"

I make a shooshing noise and pull her closer to me, awkwardly at first, but then she breaks. I rub her back soothingly like I used to do with Marti when she would cry over Abby not being there or when she got hurt. Hey, just because I don't do tears doesn't mean I don't know how to handle it. This goes on for another ten minutes and she pulls away, not quite calmed down, but enough to try to control herself, hastily wiping the tears away from her face.

"Thanks. I really am sorry. You shouldn't have had to deal with that. He was a loser and I'm stupid to be crying over him," She looks down at her hands in her lap, not looking at me, ashamed.

"No need, Princess. He cheated on you with your cousin. That's twice the reason to cry. I'm just lucky you're not crying so much," I try to lighten the mood, but I notice yet another tear escape her eye, so I reach over, unthinkingly and brush it away. She's shocked, but doesn't move.

"I'd hug you for being so nice to me, but that'd probably be pushing the issue, huh?" she lamely tries to joke, so I smile and pull her in a hug, kissing the top of her head.

"You know if you tell _anyone_ about my being nice to you, I will put the tape of you singing in the shower on the intercom at school," I pull back and she half smiles while making an 'X' over her heart to show that the secret is safe.

"Hey, Der? Can I go into the gas station to see if they have a bathroom? I want to try to clean up. I'm sure I look like a mess!"

"You sure do, Princess!" I joke, but I add a moment later, "Go on ahead. I need to fill the Prince's tank anyway."

She nods and gets out of the car, careful not to slam the door and tries to smile at me before she walks away, though it looks to me more of a grimace. As soon as shes out of sight, I pick up my cell and call Nora to give her a heads up. I caught her just getting into bed and I could hear Dad already snoring in the backround. She thanked me and warned me not to irritate or tease Casey for a while even though I'd not even dreamed about messing with her tonight, and hung up saying she'd be waiting up. I got out to fill up the tank, and immediately started to wonder why I could allow myself to show how angry I was at the cheaters. I mean, I know why I got angry. I've known since we were 15 why. I was and still am in love with my stepsister. The true mystery is why am I letting myself show the emotions I feel? I've put a lot of effort into making everyone believe that I hate Casey, or at the very least, that I couldn't care less about her, but the way I acted tonight... My thoughts are interrupted by Casey exiting the gas station with a purchase bag.

"Hey Derek, gotcha some food and a soda. I know you'll probably need it. I paid 20 for the gas so if you go over, you pay the difference," she tries to joke. She looks better now than when she did walking in, but her eyes still show the pain. God I hated seeing pain in her eyes! I'd do nearly anything to make her smile right now, but instead, I smile at her.

"Thanks Space Case. Just don't expect me to pay you back for it," I say, trying to get her mind off of Cheat-man and Icky Vicki.

"Wouldn't dream of it," she rolls her eyes at me, a small smile playing on her lips. If I can keep her like this, she won't cry and we won't fight. I like it best when we can just banter and joke with each other. Don't get me wrong, the fights we have are fun, but I don't really like it when she gets truely mad at me.

When we left the gas station, she once again was quiet. She wasn't crying anymore, but I can tell she's thinking about something, and whatever it is, it's kind of painful, so I reach out and pat her hand. I was absolutely shocked that instead of pulling away, making some joke, or just ignoring it, she twisted her fingers in mine and pulled it to her face, pressing my hand to her cheek, which makes me smirk. Though I try to hide the smirk, I don't pull away either.

"Derek? Can I ask you a serious question?" she says, putting out entwined hands back down on the seat, still not releasing mine. She loosens her grip, knowing that I may want to pull away, but I don't yet.

"Sure, Princess, just don't ask me where baby's come from," I again attempt to joke around, earning me a roll of her eyes.

"No, Derek. What I want to know is what did you say to Truman and Vicki after I told you about them ki- about what I saw?" She is curious, and she flinches in anticpation that I'll pull my hand away and get defensive, or make another joke about it, but I figure I'll just say it.

"I told them that it was wrong. That nobody should ever treat you like that and for them to apologize to you and for Tru-jerk to never talk to you again," She's taken aback and I hear her barely audible gasp, but she smiles a smile a little broader then the last, squeezing my hand once. I should probably take my hand back, but it just feels too natural. I'm selfish and messed up to want to. I know that I'd be better for her than Tru-jerk, but even so. She deserves someone better than me too, "Seriously, Case, you can do so much better than him. And you will."

"Thanks Derek. You really are the best brother a girl could have," she smiles.

"Step. Step-brother," I quickly correct her.

"...same difference," She says. I detect a little bit of sadness in her voice, but I write that off as wishful thinking.

"Is it?" I wonder. I didn't even know I'd said it aloud until Casey answered.

"Does it matter?" she whispers.

At this point, I turn to look at her. We're at a red-light now and waiting behind several cars. She's staring at our entertwined hands with a look that I cannot seem to place. I open my mouth to answer her, only to close it again after realizing I had no answer for her. I had no clue how to answer her because that was the same question that I keep asking myself day after day, never being able to come up with a suitable answer. This isn't the first time that I have wondered if she feels the same way about me as I do her based soley off of slips of the toungue, but I always let it go, deciding that there would be no way that she could, and even if she did, she could do so much better than me anyway. People think I'm arrogant, and I typically am, but there's just something about sweet innocent Casey. I look back to the road just in time to see the light turn green again.

'Boy was this going to be a long drive home!' I think to myself. At that moment, however, I look back down to Casey's tiny delicate hand entertwined with my larger hand and smile. Maybe the drive home wasn't long enough.


	2. Chapter 2 Her silent protector

AN: Alright, I'm not going to lie, this WAS supposed to be a one-shot, but three reviews in one night all asking me to continue with it? Had to draw it out a little more for them =] So, alright, I figured I could keep it going. They are still in the car, but I'm trying to keep them as real as possible, seeing as this is only supposed to be from the party to home. I may, however write a sequel to it to find out what all happens when Casey goes to her room that night, but only if you're nice to the muse faery on my shoulder and review! :D This chapter is dedicated to my four reviewers that kindly left words of encouragement and because they added it to their favorites list and story alerted =] 

sammy sosa the 13th: I wasn't going to, but since you asked so nicely! =]

Austenlvr: Well, thank you. I wouldn't want to disappoint! Let me know what you think of this chapter.

Nottin gham12: Yes, I agree, Dasey is always adorable, and thank you for the complimentative review! =]

and last, but not least

MoodyRuby227: Thank you so much! You really made my day. Yes, I'll take your advice and keep writing my LWD fics. Let me know how you think I'm doing with this chapter. Please read my other fanfics and let me know what you think of them as well, perhaps? I'm open to your ideas. If you like, I can do the same for you :)

So, I'll repeat, this chapter is dedicated to these four in hopes that they will review more, and lead others to do the same! THANK YOU!

Disclaimer: Even though my sibling and I fight like they do on Life With Derek sometimes, we are true sisters and not step. I have step siblings too, but it's sadly not enough to be able to claim ownership of this show. =[ Ah well, I shall settle with writing a Dasey fanfic about what I think SHOULD happen. And I'm happy to accept reviews as my payment ;]

"Come on, gypsy, on with the story!" - SIR YES SIR haha

Casey's POV:

On the drive home, I can't help but wonder why on earth Derek would stick up for me. I can feel Derek watching me out of the corner of his eye, probably making sure I don't cry all over his car. Although the way he's acted tonight...I glance once more at our still-entertwined hands and can't help but think that this just feels right. I know that it's wrong of me and I shouldn't have done that when he tried to pat my hand in comfort, but I couldn't help it. It was as if my hand had a mind of its own. I've known I was in love with Derek since Mom and George's wedding, but I had to remind myself that even if he did feel the same, nothing would ever happen between us because that would be immoral and step-incest, if that is even a word.

Still, the way he held me tonight, trying to calm my tears and not getting angry at my tears. Plus _he_ had been the one to instigate it, not me. He had been so sweet to me tonight and I felt like Cinderella, in a way, despite how tonight turned out, because I felt happy and content with Derek now, but I know he's just going to turn back into a rat soon.

And when he corrected me, on my usage of "brother" I had to say "same difference" even though it breaks my heart because that's just our dialogue. What shocked the heck outta me was when he asked "is it?"

He said it so quietly that I'm still not sure if it was him thinking to himself outloud or talking to me, but I answered him anyway. Would it make any difference if it weren't wrong for a stepbrother and stepsister to get together and live happily ever after? Ha, what am I thinking, Happily ever after with DEREK? We'd fight all day long, but then again...I still can't help but wish that we could at least try. I spend most of my time studying so that I _don't_ think of Derek, though he doesn't know that. I'd gladly tell him why I'm such a 'keener' for but I'm sure he wouldn't believe me even if I told him. He'd probably laugh at the fact that I actually don't care about grades, but that I'm just trying to keep my mind off of _him_.

A thousand and one things race through my mind as I look down again at our entertwined hands and I fight hard to choke down tears, although this time, it's for a different reason. Of course, I couldn't tell Derek that the reason I was crying now was sorry... we could never be together, so I just let him assume what he wanted, and I squeeze his hand once again and sigh. We sit in silence as Derek drives, still holding hands, for twenty more minutes before Derek and I try to speak at the same time only to stop abruptly and I giggle while he laughs. When we both catch our breath, he nods to me to let me know to go ahead first, so I do.

"Derek, I know you're going to go back to being a jerk whenever we get around other people, and I'm not going to take offense to it, but I just want to thank you for tonight. I know you were having fun. I didn't mean to ruin your night," I say, looking down at my lap.

"Don't worry about it, Princess. You didn't _completely_ ruin my night," he tries to joke, but one look at my face and he changes his mind, "No, for real Case, I don't blame you for wanting to get out of there. I just wish that he wouldn't have done that to you. There'll be other parties, Casey, but it's not very often we get along like this. It's what us... step-brothers...do, right? Help our...stepsisters...out of sticky situations. Oh, and just for the record, of course I'm going to be a jerk again. If I wasn't, I wouldn't be the one and only Derek Venturi," he puffs out his chest at this last statement, and it makes me laugh, a little bit.

Derek's POV:

Man, I wish she would have let me go first.

As we were driving in silence, I kept thinking about so many things. I wondered what it would be like to hold her in my arms when we fall asleep. Or getting to hold her hand as we walk down the halls at school. I imagined what it would be like to kiss her whenever I wanted, to be able to take her places. I wanted to be able to put my arm around her when we sit down to watch a movie together. But mostly, I want to be able to love her openly so that no other guy could try to love her as much as me and when they fail, not hurt her. I never want to see her hurt again, but when as she kept thanking me for tonight, I lost my self-confidence. She'll only ever see me as her annoying jerk of a step-brother. It just reminds me that she can do a hundred times better than me. And when that day comes, I swear to never stand in her way. I will do everything in my power to make her happy, because as long as she's happy, I'm happy for her, even if I can't be openly happy for her. I swear to myself that I will always be her silent protector.

AN: Alright, kiddos. Here's the next chapter. I wasn't going to keep going with this one, but, since it has been so sweetly asked for, I have done so, and hopefully I don't disappoint!

Read and review, pretty please and thank you!


	3. Chapter 3 The question

AN: So, it's taken me a while to post the next chapter, and my deepest apologies are sent to my wonderful, fantastic, inspiring readers! Warning: This chapter was written whilst listening to Panic! at the Disco, Paramore, and even JLo! My moods been...very depressed lately and almost without cause, but I'm trying to not let it effect the story much. haha.

Special thanks goes out to my reviewers:

Austenlvr: Thanks! Sorry to keep you waiting, but between work and planning my lil vacation, it's been kinda hectic. I promise to make it up to you! Oh, and you never know, there **might** be a little Dasey kiss when they get home that night, but only if you promise to keep reviewing!

nottingham12: Yes, I am continuing this story, haha. Thanks for the appreciation on the last line :) I did it that way on purpose, of course, because that's how I've always viewed Derek for Casey.

esn89: I shall fulfill your request, but IF AND ONLY IF you continue to read it haha =)

Preetoaka Raven Potter Weasley: Thanks for the support! And, no sorry, it wasn't meaning to be a Lizwin, but if you like, I can write a fanfic of Lizwin for you and dedicate it to you =) Just review and let me know!

This chapter is dedicated to these four in hopes they will continue their reviewing and urge others to do the same =)

Okay, I'm going to get on with the story befo-**SPLAT** Okay, now WHO threw that tomato! SO NOT COOL! HERE! Now put the tomatoes away!

Disclaimer: WHY OH WHY CAN"T I JUST OWN THE SHOW? FINE! *pouts* consider the little idea of this fanfiction my own, but other than that, the fantastic show is just out of my claiming abilities *Whines!*

Derek's POV:

We drive in silence for what seems like forever, but the clock only says that it's been ten minutes tops. We are now about a half hour away from home and I look to Casey for what seems to be the billionth time. She still hasn't let go of my hand yet, and now she's tracing circles on it with her thumb. Oddly, it still hasn't bothered me. In fact, I dread having to let go. I feel as though the only thing keeping me from falling off of the face of the Earth is her hand. The only thing keeping me sane is her patterns being traced onto my hand. The only thing keeping me from freezing is her warmth. It's odd how I've fallen so hard over this girl, the same girl I've seen caked in shampoo, hair messy with no make-up and in sweats, dressed like the drag queen from hell on a Prom night, even. I've seen this girl at her worst, know all her faults, witnessed her break-downs, and know all her weaknesses, and yet, I can't set it in my mind that she's _just_ Casey; that she's _just_ another girl. Most of all, I can't bring myself _not_ to love her. Most days, it's all I can do not to kiss her, and others, it's down-right nearly impossible to beg her to love me as I love her.

And unfortunately, she's just out of my reach. So close, yet eons away. I can't imagine my life without Casey now, but the only way she can exist in my life right now is if she's my stepsister. Of course, I have to pretend that she disgusts me, that she annoys and embarrasses me, because that's just how I roll, but I were truely being honest with myself, I'd take the circles being traced into my hands as a sign that the girl in question likes me. Seeing as I've actually done my best to keep her at bay from myself, I've pushed her so far as to hate me. She is only acting like this now, acting as if she doesn't hate me for going to the party with her. I bet she'll somehow come up with a "DER-REK!" yell soon eough, effectively blaming me for tonight's events, but it really doesn't seem likely. I just decide that I'll take the time I have like this and treasure it as one of our moments I'll never forget, and remember them on my late nights that plague of sleeplessness.

Often, when I can't get her out of my head, I'll try to clear my mind with music, of course to the highest volume, but that doesn't even work most of the time because the first thought in my mind is that Casey will be here in five point two seconds, yelling at me to turn it down. I will never be able to tell her this, but, I _love_ the way she yells my name in anger, even. Its music to my ears, and to see the fire in her eyes brings the biggest smile to my face because I know that _I_ put the fire there, and only _I_ alone can. I know she's never truely angry, because she enjoys our little fights as much as I do. Of course, I've also learned the hard way not to push her too far though. The feminist is quite fiesty at times, and even deadly. Got to keep the balance so that she doesn't hate me, yet she doesn't have complete control over me. Okay, so she has total influence over me, because I am positive that if it were any other girl, I'd never have left that party, or put so much effort in what I do, but that doesn't mean I have to let her know that!

My eyes back on the road, I know I have to piss her off royally later, and I dread the consequences. Another bit of influence that the Princess has on me, because I _never_ thought about consequences before, let alone cared about them! But oh well, it can't be too bad to change a little, oh what the hell am I thinking? Change a _little?_ I'm sure EVERYONE has noticed that I've changed since my new stepsister waltzed in my life. Sure, most people think I'm more of a jerk, but I have to put so much more effort in even that aspect. I'm sure my true friends, like Sam, have really noticed what's going on behind my little faquade, but so far, they're smart enough not to say anything. I think Sam only realized what was going on after he dated her and saw how I reacted, which was absolutely stupid on my part, but I couldn't control it. I, Derek Venturi, was seriously, completely jealous. Jealous that he could be with her, and jealous that he HAD her. I hated him for putting that smile on her face, for making her giggle while she twirled his necklace on her neck. That should have been me making her laugh and that should have been my necklace that she never took off. She's the only person I'd take my necklace off for and give it to, and I'd hand it over gladly. But, life's a bitch and now, I can't help but feel bitter. I'm happy for Dad finding Nora and all, because she makes Dad happy, that was never the issue, but why did Casey have to be Nora's daughter! The bitterness and resentment continues to boil as I drive, thinking about it, and my speed picks up.

Casey's POV:

Derek's driving a little fast, but I let it go. I can't help but sigh in contentment now that I've calmed down a little more. I'm still upset, of course, because Derek is just so far away in a figurative sense, but it's hard to cry when you've got the world's most amazing guy's hand holding yours. Okay, Derek's not perfect, I know all his flaws, like the fact that he doesn't follow rules, he never cleans his room, he's a jerk 99 percent of the time, and so many more, but, he's still...amazing. He never ceases to amaze me. Like tonight, I didn't think he'd stop dancing with his blonde dance partner to talk to his keener step-sister, but he did and he was concerned! How he acts with Marti completely contradicts his entire jerk-faquade because it's like he can't say no to Marti. It's no secret that she's got him completely wrapped around her little finger.

I'll never admit to anyone how much I'm jealous of all the girls Derek's dated, even though there's only one reason that I'm jealous for. The fact that they had Derek, and even had the possibility, makes my eyes glow green, but, for now, he's in the car with _me_ and he's holding _my_ hand. Sure, he is probably doing it just to be sure I'll not cry all over his car, but I've come to appreciate our little moments. Often, it's the only thing that helps me get to sleep peacefully at night. It's the thoughts that run through my head to a love song when I dance. It's the thing that drives me crazy with bitterness as I look at Mom and George. If he didn't make her so happy, I'd never have supported their marriage. I'd have let Mom say no to George that day that he proposed. Maybe then...

No, I have to shake my thoughts from my head. I can't think like that because if that were to have happened, I'd never have gotten to know Derek the way I have. Sure, he loves to terrorize me, prank me, make my life a living hell at times, but only he could do it so that I can't completely hate him. I hate to think how much influence he has on me, too. He's the reason that I'm intriqued to the dark side. The reason I pulled that prank on the principal when he was new, moving all his furniture to the roof. I was so shocked at my luck that I was never a suspect, but that DEREK was, oh alright, I wasn't THAT shocked that Derek was a suspect. He makes me want to let loose and have fun. He's too tempting, and the more I shut him out, the more difficult he becomes. If I go along with him, he gets difficult too though... Balance. Balance is the key.

I look again to Derek's face and see...anger? Probably at me, as usual, but maybe not completely at me because he has yet to pull his hand away, and Derek would have NO problem pulling his hand back, for which I'm completely glad because his hand has become a life-line to me, and it's limited time, borrowed time, that I never want to waste. Unfortunately, I know the longer I let this go on, the longer I give in to this little fantasy that Derek cares for me at all, the harder it will hit me, the more it will hurt me. Deciding I've been a glutton for punishment enough I loosen my grip and will myself to let go. Why does it feel like I'm letting go while dangling off the side of a tall cliff?

Derek's POV:

My anger is abruptly distracted when I feel Casey's hand loosen in mine, so I look at our hands to see her pulling away slightly, and upon her face, the agony is absolutely evident. For a moment, I let myself be fooled to believe that the pain on her face was from letting my hand go, from letting _me_ go, but that cannot possibly be it, can it? I look at her with a questioning look and she looks like she's about to cry again, but shrugs her shoulders.

"Why, Case?" I ask her.

"You don't do PDA remember? Not even with your girlfriends. You don't want me as a sister, step or not, and you despise me. You don't have to do this if you don't want to, Der. I'm sorry for being a burden to you all these years," she pulls her hand away, choking a sob, trying to not cry, but, it's too much for me. I know I have a choice to make: either I go along with her, letting her fight the tears, feel horrible, and get back to way things used to be, or I could comfort her, tell her that she's not a burden to me, that of course she'd never be a sister to me, but that she'd never be a burden. With option two, however, I'd have to admit what she _really_ is to me, but maybe... No, I'll just go with a mixture of the two.

I reach over and unbuckle her seat belt, grab her hand again and pull her over to me, shock all over her face. To be honest, I'm not sure why I'm letting myself do this, but it's too late now. I wrap my arm around her and pull off to the side of the road again. When I put it into park, I turn slightly and look straight into her eyes.

"Princess, of course you'll never be a sister to me. Ever. But you're also not a burden. You've helped me out a million times since we met and I'd never give any of the time back, good or bad. Yes I pick on you, prank you, and make your life a living hell, but that's just life. It's a bitch and we can't change things in the past, though I so would if I could.

She sits there, inches away from me, pure shock written all over her face. I am still looking her straight into her eyes, trying to read what emotions are swimming in there, but there are so many, it's hard to tell what emotion is from what. I find it extremely hard not to close the mere inches between us with a kiss, but I somehow resist.

"What would you change Derek?" Her question takes me by suprise, I blink with a question.

"Wh-What do you mean?" I stutter out.

"You said, if you could change things in the past, you would. What I want to know is what would you change?" She asks again, her eyes demand an answer. The question I have to ask myself is screaming at me.

Do I tell her?

AN: yes, I know, serious cliffy here! Sorry for the long wait, but I hope to not leave you all hanging again for so long! My goal is to have the 4th chapter ready to post in two days, uploading it on Friday, but...who knows? Maybe sooner, maybe later.


	4. Chapter 4 Frustrations

AN: Alright, so I have left you waiting for quite some time, and for that, I am deeply sorry. I have been quite preoccupied with work and life. The last thing I posted was a contest to see who could make the best video on youtube of my fanfic "that's all i ask of you" but nobody responded, unfortunately, and this has greatly upset the muse faery on my shoulder. Well, but in all seriousness, it did discourage me, so I took a break instead of attempting to write while discouraged, because knowing me, I'd probably be awful to my favorite LWD characters.

Disclaimer: If I owned LWD, I would probably make a mysterious twist where it would be perfectly normal for Derek and Casey to be together, because I mean, seriously, they are too cute not to!

AN: Well, I suppose I should get back to my writing...**sigh** Leave the rotton fruits and vegetables at the door, okay?

Casey's POV:

I sit still, staring at Derek, barely breathing. The silence has made the two minutes seem like two hours waiting on him to respond. I know that if I say anything, I'll break the trance and evil Derek will come out to play. I guess I could just change the subject, but I'm just too curious, and I hate to admit it, but his stuttering false starts are pretty adorable. Unfortunately, I can see him getting frustrated with each try. Finally, he looks down at his lap for a moment, then at my eyes again.

"Casey, there are several things in the past I could change. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I wish that we had...met under different circumstances. However, I have to admit, I have had a lot of fun with you in my... with you around. I can't help but think that if you weren't Nora's daughter and I wasn't my dad's son, we could have been... great friends. But life sucks. Karma's a bitch, too."

"So you would change that your dad was your dad and change that my mom was my mom? Why?"

"Damnit Casey, do you have to know everything?" he says, exasperatedly, "I just don't know how to word it to make you understand!"

"Well there is a lot of things I haven't told you because I don't know how to make you understand too!" I can feel my temper start to rise, but then I choke it back down, knowing that Derek is not the person I want to fight with tonight. Derek, seeing me do this, did the same. I could see him struggling, and I put my hand on his in order to calm him down. Suprisingly enough, he takes my hand and brings it up to his face, like I did earlier.

"Casey, I don't know what to say or do. All I know is I don't want to fight tonight, alright? This is crazy. I would change a lot of the things in my past, both pre and post the MacDonald's entrance," he gives me a Derek smirk and I can't help but to practically melt. Thankfully it's dark so all he can really see is my small smile cast in shadows. If only there were a way for Derek to know how I feel! If only it were possible!

Derek's POV:

It's taking everything in me not to lash out at the frustration. I don't want to do that because Casey might take it in offense, thinking I was lashing out at her. To be fair, she does frustrate me a lot, and I do lash out often, but it's not at HER that I lash out about: I just hate being frustrated. When I took her hand, it was to feel her touch so I could calm down, and it works. I'm glad because I was not expecting to go into full confession (okay, half confession) mode tonight. This is so not what I had planned when I got dressed for the party.

I can't tell her that she's the reason I am the way I am. I can't tell her I do what I do to get her attention. I refuse to let her know that she has so much control over me. I won't tell her that she's the voice of reason in the back of my head. She keeps me going, on my toes. She's always challenging me to come up with more creative ideas and clever pranks. I have to try harder when she's around. I have to constantly push myself. I'm positive that normal people would use that academically or something like that, but not me. She's constantly on the brain. The question I ask myself most is "What would Casey say?" and that usually gets me through the day.

Each new day was always something new, even if it generally went by the same quota as the day before: Wake up late, fight Casey for the bathroom (while secretly fighting for self-control) go down for breakfast (which usually was interesting because Casey would still be mad about whatever I did to win the bathroom incident), and go to school. School would pass by then there was hockey practice followed by chill time with my friends. Friends would leave and then it'd be time to fight with Casey about the tv until dinner. Dinner fights about whatever I'd done to annoy/anger Casey and failing classes then I'd go up to my room until it would be time to tuck Marti in, then back to my room until I'd fall asleep thinking of new ways to aggravate my step-sister without letting on about what really goes on in my head. Sprinkle in some comical pranks and some other random fights, some close calls, and hang-time with each of my other siblings (step and not) and you had my day.

I have to say that keeping myself in control was usually easy when I realize a close call's coming so I make her mad. I take whatever she says a little more seriously so that I get mad enough to fight the desire. I have to admit, however, it's a wonder that I've lasted this long undetected. I can't help but think, if Casey knew, she'd be proud of how much self control I've aquired. Perhaps a little disappointed in the way I've directed the playout, but the outcome is always the same. I've succeeded.

Question was, how much longer could I last?

AN: Alrighty kiddos. Short chapter, forgive me, but I'm just getting back into this after what feels like a long time. Most people have most likely forgotten this fanfic, but I hope you enjoy! READ AND REVIEW!


	5. Chapter 5 Taking Chances

AN: Holy crap, people HAVEN'T forgotten! :D this makes me really really really happy. The Faery Muse wants me to thank the reviewers that reviewed last chappie and chappie three, and since the faery muse has been angry and giving me writers block, I'll do so and try to appease! Reviews tend to keep it happy. And the Upload Goblin is starving for reviews...the more reviews, the faster the update!

Chappie 3 reviewer shoutout!: (Sorry, I meant to do this in the previous chappie, but forgot to, so I am doing so now!)

Dark-Supernatural-Angel: Yes, I actually like that song as well :) Not intended, but definitely fits! If it pleases you, read the chapter while listening to that song :)

iheartdasey: Yes, Cliffy! sorry!

kmr04: Thank you! :)

nottingham12: Haha, glad you liked! You'll LOVE this chapter then!

JustMe12345: Thank you! I appreciate the encouragement!

HotReads: Oh, I'm sorry! Here's a chappie!

CHAPPIE FOUR REVIEWER SHOUTOUT!:

Dark-Supernatural-Angel: Haha yeah, sorry about that. Didn't mean to leave ya hanging! And Don't worry, the truth comes out (A little!) This story is meant to be a filler for the the ride home between the party and home. Too much can't happen, but I promise there will be a little something in this chapter just for you!

leaf26, bubbles237, and ZenNoMai: Thank you. Glad you are enjoying this story! Keep reviewing, I'll keep writing, and you know I appreciate any kind of encouragement or constructive criticism!

THANK YOU ALL!

DISCLAIMER: I have not, do not, will not claim ownership of Life with Derek. This saddens me greatly. However, I do own a laptop, and have an account here. I am lucky with a few loyal readers and my wild imagination. AND CHICKEN NUGGETS! haha had to throw that in there.

LEAVE ROTTEN FRUIT AT THE DOOR PLEASE!

Casey's POV:

We're only a little over fifteen minutes away from home now and I have to bite my tongue. There is so much I want to say to Derek, need to say to Derek, but I know that this is just a little pocket universe. Nice Derek, sweet Derek never comes out any other time.

As Derek begins to resume driving, I notice he still does not release my hand, so I resume drawing patterns with my fingers on the back of his hand. I hear him sigh. I haven't moved back over to my seat yet, still snuggled against his side, but I really don't want to. I don't even really want to go home, either. I just want to stay right here in this moment. I don't want this ride to ever end. Holding hands with Derek, snuggled to his side, head on his shoulder, I'm content. I almost forget what happened tonight. Unbelievably, I would even thank Truman and Vicky for what they did. Yet, I know that right now, I can't. If this pocket universe could be my true reality, then yes. If I never had to leave Derek's side, if Derek were to kiss me, tell me that he loved me and promise to never leave me, no matter what? Hell yeah, I'd give them a certificate and a hug each. But that is not my reality. My reality sucks.

I'm afraid of letting this opportunity pass me by, though. I look up at his face a moment, hesitating, before I let go of him a moment, reach up, and kiss his cheek. At that exact moment, however, Derek decides to turn and look at me, and our lips meet.

Derek's POV:

When our lips met, I froze a second from the shock, and I felt her do the same. But I couldn't let this opportunity pass. As she started to back away, I let go of her hand and pulled her close. Pulling over once again, I kiss her. I know that it's wrong, but at the moment? To hell with the world. I know that this moment probably would never happen again, so I decide quickly to, for the moment, revel in it. I was doing what I had only dreamt about the entire time I've known her. I was kissing Casey. I let myself get caught up in the moment, getting carried away a bit, but Casey wasn't pulling away anymore, in fact, she was pulling me closer. Holy shit! My hand under her chin, pulling her face closer to mine, her hands go straight to my hair and I can't help but think that no other girl that's done that before's made it feel so good.

Casey's POV:

It was as if time stood still. It was exactly like a scene from a movie, or one of my favorite books. I know that there will be hell to pay and that this will lead to one of the most awkward moments in history, but at the moment, I couldn't care less. For a moment, Derek Venturi was mine.

The kiss was like nothing I ever experienced in my life. I always thought the movies exaggerated about 'fireworks' and such, but no. Honestly? No guy has ever made me feel this way until now. All too soon, the kiss ended and I just looked into his eyes.

All I could think was, 'Oh my gosh, what did I just do?"

AN: Alright, this chapter is SUPER short, I know. But I didn't want to add anything else to mess it up! Next chapter will be up soon!


	6. Chapter 6 Truth and Covers

AN: Okay, so a HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE appology to all the readers (who have probably forgotten about this story) that were looking foward to an update. I have no excuses that I wish to disclose and I understand if I have been taken off of everyone's favorites/alerts lists.

IF there is anyone still interested in the story, here's to you. There will probably be this chapter, and perhaps another one before the closing epilogue. However, if I do not get enough/any/many reviews, I'll be forced to take this story down. I find it hard to write a story when noone is interested. So please, it takes less than five minutes of your day. Even if it is to tell me to give up, I'll appreciate the feedback.

~  
TO THE REVIEWERS OF LAST CHAPPIE  
Gingiie666, Ghostwriter, bubbles237: Thanks so much and my appologies for the horrendous wait.

fiona91: I'm glad you are in the same mindset as I am :) haha because that's EXACTLY why I began writing this!

ZenNoMai: Thanks for the feedback! I appreciate it because I try to use any feedback I get for future writing. I only aspire to get better. I'm glad you appreciate my use of pocket universes and that you got what you were waiting for (SOOO many people asked me for a Dasey kiss! LOL I was worried about it because there was no hint in the show that anything like that happened, but I'll make it work.)

pheonix9648z: Yes, Yes I did leave it there! muhahahaha! But I appologize greatly for the long wait :(

nmlovegoodxl: My appologies for being the villan! :D I appreciate the compliments and hope that you have not completely forgotten me in the long wait.

Dark-Supernatural-Angel: OMG I AM SO SORRY! I bet you have forgotten all about me and it is all my fault :( I hope you do not completely hate me. And of course, safety first! Derek did pull off the side of the road.

AN2: Okay, so next time I don't update within 48 hours, bombard me with private messages and force me to get my butt going! I didn't forget about the story and I do not abandon stories and leave them up, so PLEASE bug the hell out of me and keep me on task!

ON WITH THE STORY! (Usually I say leave the fruits and vegetables at the door, but at this point, I probably desearve it!)

Caseys POV:

We sit in silence for what seems ages- the only thing breaking it would be our laboured breathing- but the clock only says it was six minutes. Maybe that was the first right thing I'd done since meeting Derek. My head is still spinning and I'm not sure what to do.

A part of me wants to back up, sit in my seat with my seatbelt on, demand to be driven home and pretend that it never happened.

But a bigger part of me wants to just reach up and kiss him again. I watch a car pass by as I tried to cool myself down. Derek was DEFINITELY a good kisser. There was absolutely reason for all the girlfriends- it was not just over exaggerated hype. I still couldn't believe that it had happened. I had daydreamed about it for ages, but now that it had happened? I was speechless for the first time in my life.

I was so confused! What happened now? What were we supposed to do? I know he wanted it too now. I think now both of our feelings were showing quite plainly. The only thing left was what do we do with our new knowledge?

If we agreed to continue, there would be talks. It could even possibly be classified as a scandal. It would put Mom and George in an awkward position and perhaps even cause a fight or a drift in the family. Emily would be hurt, seeing as she had a crush on him for years. But we would be happy together, possibly. We could live out all those fantasies I had in my head.

Or we could ignore what had just happend- forget it even occured. Go on with life as always. It would be easy for the family- I don't think anyone suspected that this could ever happen- Derek and I are as different as night and day. Life would be normal. But we would be miserable. I was so confused.

So I did the only logical thing I could think of- something I never thought I'd find logical in a million years- I turned to Derek, "What now?"

Derek's POV:

"What now?" 'what now? she asks? I've never heard a girl ask me that before, but then again, it was never Casey- never the same situation.

The brain in my head is screaming "NO!" but my heart keeps pounding out the beat "KISS HER AGAIN!" We sit in silence for another minute before I can come up with a decent answer.

"I-I don't know." Okay, did I say decent? I meant pathetic-yet-the-only-thing-that-will-be-close-to-the-truth, "M-maybe we could pretend that never happened-for now." I added, seeing as she wasn't angry for what happened, so perhaps she wanted it too.

"Until when?" She asks, barely making eye contact- her voice was so small if a car would have passed by, I'd have not heard her.

"University? When we are finally free of our parents and friends? -of this town?" I know I sound like such a cop out, but it seems like that will be the only time we can discuss what happened tonight. Casey is never good about coping with things that are out of her control...and this? Not easily controllable.

Casey's POV

"Sounds...good. Sounds- like a plan." I smile a small smile and start to go back to my side of the car but Derek stops me, keeping me close. I lay my head on my shoulder and a sigh escapes as he starts the car back up again to make the five minute journey to our garage.

And all I could think was-

Gieze, life with Derek was about to get interesting.

And yes, another short one, but I was wanting to get this chapter overwith without screwing up the next chapter. I know this is like, criminally short and hardly a waste of your time, but the REAL she-bang will be the epilogue...I just want to get this story finished. I'm not sure if I will ever write a sequel, or maybe I'll just let someone adopt the rights to write a sequel, who knows. *meh and a shrug* Review-and-bug-me!

Lil Elf


	7. Chapter 7 songbird

AN: AWWWW! I can honestly say I have the best read-n-reviewers in the entire world! You all are AWESOME! I didn't expect such a happy return as I got, but I am absolutely grateful! Wow, you know I'm happy when I overuse the exclaimation point =D Well, I thought I'd better get on with the last chapter before the epilogue. Just warning you, this part sticks with the story line. There will be a little dialogue before they go in (you all might very well hate me for it- so I appologize in advance) and then they talk to Nora. There might be some stuff afterwards (nothing big) and then fin the chapter. It is the epilogue people are looking forward to. UNIVERSITY! haha. I'm thinking I might put the idea of a sequel (university life) up for adoption to one of my readers so if you are interested, drop a line!

And that concludes my rambling.

TO THANKING MY REVIEWERS!  
Leaf26: awww thank you! I hope I do not disappoint.

kmr04: Yes, I agree! I really should have finished this story by now. Thank you so much for being...well, YOU! I am really glad you like how it is written :D and you are always ready with suggestions and encouragement. For this, I wish I could give you a cupcake or something, but alas, fanfic does ot give us that option =(

fiona91: I'm happy I didn't disappoint! Seeing as this is the last chapter and it will only cover the rest of the episode and then the epilogue, I'm not so sure that there will be much of worry about keeping it hidden, sorry. However, I am not opposed to writing other fafics for specific chapters so if you want, name an episode, I'll re-watch it and come up with a fanfic with whatever ship-ment you want (be it Dasey, Lizwin, whatever :] )

Dark-Supernatural-Angel: You have stuck by me and my story the entire time. I do believe you have reviewed each chapter with encouragement and advice. You do not- cannot POSSIBLY uderstand how grateful I am to you or how much I appreciate the time you spend reviewing this. But back on track to the story and responding to your review- I already have the epilogue up in my head and I just need to write it out. I never know how long or short a chappie is going to be until I write it. But I do have the epilogue planned out in my head.

CatzzCK and Ghostwriter: Aww thanks you two! I appreciate each of you two for taking the time to review with such encouraging words. You really don't know how much each review makes my day =)

bubbles237: I want to thank you for your kind review and thank you. I've come close to just saying screw this and deleting all my stories. I never feel like I'm talented enough to write and I feel like a fraud sometimes, but I haven't because I love writing. Thank you for reminding me of that :)

AN: I know you all were probably hoping for some plot twist, but I appologize there will not be much of one- I am sorry if I have disappointed you with this chapter. I am just trying to bring it to a close. WOW and this story was SUPPOSED to be a one shot! haha. See what you reviewers do? You drag the story out 7 chapters plus an epilogue! =]

Casey's POV:

Pulling up into the drive I start to reach for the door handle, readying myself to get out of the vehicle, wanting nothing more than to curl up in my bed for the night (okay, maybe kissing Derek again would be higher on the list, but come on, give a girl some credit here!), but Derek once again stops me from moving (seriously, this is becoming a habit!), and pulls me into a hug then pulls back both of his hands resting on my upper arms, thumbs making soothing circles.

"Remember, Space Case, we are going to wait until University to talk about what happened, so you have to put out of your mind. I have to continue acting as I always do and so do you. Tonight all that happened was that you caught Tru-scum and Vicky-the-Hicky making out and I brought you home."

I nod, not saying anything, taking a deep breath. With everything that had happened I had almost forgotten what had started tonights snowball of dramatic events. It was odd how it didn't even hurt much anymore. In fact, the only thing that was painful was the long wait I would have to endure, fighting my feelings, acting as if nothing had happened, for months until both Derek and I were enrolled and started University. Fresh tears filled my eyes, but I refuse to cry anymore.

Derek's POV

Casey's eyes fill with more tears but I can see she's fighting them with a fury only Casey can summon. I have to wonder, though, if she really had feelings for me, then why was she crying for Captain Tru-douche? I reach up and wipe the single tear that fell just below her eyelash line.

"Casey, really, scum like him are not worth your time, let alone your tears,"

"Der, I'm not crying for, for _Truman_," she spits out the word as if it were the nastiest medicine on earth- except medicine is actually good for you- "I'm upset because it's just not fair. University is MONTHS away! I know I'm being silly, but it just seems like forever. Its going to be hard to act like nothing happened tonight..." she trailed off. Oh. So that's why she's upset.

"Princess, it's not silly. I know it'll be hard but a few months will pass like that," I snap my fingers, "and I'll have to be my usual self, picking on you. Not to mention, you may be a sucky liar, but you are a great actress. These are just our roles until University. Just gotta get through Prom, Graduation, and summer. We'll go to University and we won't have to pretend anymore. We'll talk about tonight and decide how we want things to go down. WE choose. Nobody else. We'll get through this, Princess. I know we can." I have to stop there because my voice is choked up and if I continue, I'll start crying and go into full confession mode right here and now instead of waiting until University.

She nods, dries her tears, and leans to me to hug me tight, which I return. And then she says five words that nearly stop my heart.

"Derek, Kiss me for courage?" she says so quietly, but they ring in my ears. I can only smile slightly because she doesn't realize that I'm the one who needs courage. So I lean in and capture her lips in mine.

It isn't forceful or lustful. It isn't desperate or rushed. It's slow and needy, my hand cupping her chin and her eyes flutter closed. Time seems to stop and it's just Casey and I. Me and Casey. I breathe in deeply as we finally break away, our foreheads rest against each other. I hear her sigh.

"Act one, scene one." She half giggles and slips out the passenger seat door. I follow suit and get out, brushing past her to open the front door for her. As the door opens, I remember that I called Nora so I don't share the suprised look on Casey's face when the light in the livingroom meets our eyes to reveal a sleepy worried Nora sitting up quickly at the door opening.

Casey's POV:

I take a deep breath when I see Mom half laying on the couch. I can tell she's tired and worried- probably about me. But I don't understand how she knew we would be back tonight since I had told her that we were staying at Vicky's.

"Hey Mom, what are you doing up?"

"Waiting for you. Derek called," she says as an eplaination, "You okay?" Apparently she's already heard the whole story about Truman.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I start to say, but one look from Mom shows me that she won't let it go, so I give in to the tears I'd been trying to fight all night- being cheated on, being lied to, confusion over feelings, and frustration about having to camoflauge feelings- and rush over to her to give her a hug. I hear Derek behind me.

"More tears? You're like Niagra Falls! Night ladies." and he excuses himself to his bedroom. I know he is just playing his part so I start to dry my tears as I pull away from Mom. I can't help but set up a little bit of a reason for the lack of any major hostility between us.

"You know, maybe he's not such a bad guy afterall."

"Truman?" Mom says, suprised.

"No, Truman is scum. I meant Derek," I say with a feigned amazed look. Truthfully, I am suprised that Derek's been so kind, but now I think I can probably piece together why he's been the way he was towards me. Of course, I'll have to ask him to be sure.

"Mom, I'm tired. Can we talk in the morning?" I ask her. She obliges and I make my way quickly to my room and get ready for bed. Before I climb under the covers, I step into my closet, to the vent that Derek and I share.

"Hey Derek?"

"Yes Princess?" he replies, quicker than I anticipated.

"Thank you.."

"Not sure what you are thanking me for, Case, but you are welcome."

"Derek?" I say his name again, curious.

"Yes, Case?"

"What were you doing by the vent?" He lets out a nervous chuckle before answering.

"Haha, umm...well...sometimes I find it hard to sleep so I..." and he mumbles something I couldn't understand.

"Sorry, didn't quite catch that."

"Ahem," he coughs to clear his throat, "I-uh- like to listen to you sleep sometimes. It relaxes me or something when I can't sleep." He defended himself. I giggle at this a second before I calm his fears.

"That's sweet, Derek. Maybe I could sing to you instead though...you know, the next time you can't sleep?"

"Can you sing my favorite song?" Derek asks quickly.

"Sure, Der, for you." and I begin to hum the beginning bars.

_"For you, there'll be no more cryin'_

_for you, the sun will be shinin'_

_cause I feel that when I'm with you_

_it's alright, I know it's right_

_To you, I'll give the world_

_To you, I'll never be cold_

_Cause I feel that when I'm with you_

_It's alright, I know it's right_

_And the songbirds are singing_

_like they know the score_

_and I love you I love you_

_I love you like never before_

_And I wish you all the love in the world_

_but most of all I wish it from myself_

_and the songbirds keep singing _

_like they know the score_

_And I love you I love you_

_I love you like never before_

_like never before like never before"_

And I hear a small sigh before a slight snore before I get up to get into my own bed. I begin to make a list in my head of things I know for sure tonight.

One: There is something going on between Derek that we have on hold until we can escape to talk about it.

Two: Mom's going to want a full story tomorrow, and I just don't want to talk about it.

Three: Tonight's performance will probably become a regular encoure everynight- but maybe I could get him to sing to me tomorrow night.

And before I get to number four, I'm slipping off into dreamland, which conveniently the last thing think of is trying to do a mental calculation of exactly how many days, minutes, and seconds this whole charade will have to be held up.

AN: Alright, sorry if that was not what you were hoping for, but at least it has some length and dialogue this time! Plus there was no aweful wait between updates!

Thanks so much for everyone who took the time to read, review, and/or alert this story. Special thanks to everyone who added this to their favorites list and after the epilogue there will be a special uploaded chappie thingy to thank each and every reviewer incase you don't read anything but the actual chapters.

IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED IN WRITING A SEQUEL TO THIS AFTER THE EPILOGUE JUST LET ME KNOW AND I WILL PUT A SPECIAL MENTION IN THERE AS WELL TO DIRECT THESE READERS TO THE STORY FOWARD!

OOPS forgot to add this earlier. DISCLAIMER: Nope don't own never have never will.


	8. Epilogue

AN: OMG I am SO sorry! I told you guys to bug the hell out of me! :( If anybody is interested, this is the epilogue- the final chapter. The END. FIN. haha Well I figured that I have time and it was because of a review from Ella1989 so you guys can thank her for getting my butt in gear! Oh and nix the summer romances in the movie and Simon as well.

Disclaimer: -Sigh- must we go through this EVERY time? Fine. I don't own anything but a laptop. .

Reviewers for last chapter:

Ella1989: Thanks for getting my butt in gear with your review! I loved the song too. What really got my attention for the song (Original is awesome too) was the glee version. I dunno if you watch that show, but Naya Rivera sings the Glee version and she's really good.

CatzzCK: AWWWWW thanks so much! You are amazing! I'm thinking of letting someone else write a sequal based off of this epilogue. If you take it up I will be more than happy to help you with it.

Ghostwriter: haha your reviews are always short and sweet- but that is why you are awesome :) to quote ya, "Catch ya on the flip side!"

bubbles237: Thank you so much :) you don't know how that makes me smile.

Mustangchik2007: Sorry for the lateness! Here it is! and I am SOOO not giving anything away!

nmlovegoodxl: Well, maybe it's fate? :D Well, here is the epilogue, m'dear! Hope those mixed feelings are a good sign for this epilogue!

kmr04: Yeah, there are so many stories just thrown together to get them finished. NOT ME! I wanted them to think rationally. I figured Derek is more grown up than he seems and Casey IS smart. It just fit in my head somehow haha. Well this is the epi and it...well just read and find out ;P

Dark-Supernatural-Angel: Okay, here we go!  
1) Her list was in her head so luckily no sherlock and watson or lil purple princess can barge in and see!  
2) aww thank you. I thought they deserved some adorableness! And yes, Derek DID fall asleep against the wall near the vent. Thankfully, he's instilled some fear in his siblings not to barge in so he's safe ;)  
3) Well, you can use your imagination if they shared more kisses of courage...I'm only going to be vague about that haha.  
4)HEHE yup. It's what I thought when I was watching the show so...  
Thank you so much for sticking by the story. Hope you enjoy the epilogue and sorry for the delay!

AN: SEE THE AUTHOR'S NOTE AT THE BOTTOM AS IT IS IMPORTANT!

AND here we go!

EPILOGUE!

(Casey's POV)

I can't sit still! Derek and I are in the car driving to our new apartment and I'm nervous. I know I'm twiddeling my thumbs and I know it's irritating Derek but I can't help it! University starts in 2 weeks. We decided we wanted to get all our stuff settled in first before we have to worry about classes and homework...and have our talk. I wasn't sure what was making me most nervous- University, moving away from our parents, or that talk.

Well, I'm more anxious to have the talk than anything. We've been putting it off now since that night and just as promised we are going to unload the trailer behind us with our stuff, set up the kitchen and bedrooms and talk over pizza. I think. God this is so confusing! I look over at Derek and start to think of those few months of waiting.

_"Der-rek! Come on I need in the bathroom!" I yell. It was only a week after what I was dubbing 'confession night' and we were doing keeping our secret pretty well. Derek, true to his word, did not change his behavior too much. I keep pounding on the door until he opens it, smirking._

_"Need something, Princess?"_

_"Uh, the bathroom?" I'm kind of speechless. He's only in his pajama pants and still dripping wet from his shower. All I can think is that hockey has done him GOOD!_

_"Sure thing," he winks at me and starts to move past me. Something in me snapped I guess I don't know because the next thing I know, I'm shoving Derek back into the bathroom, looking around for a witness and then following him in, shutting the door behind me. Nothing went TOO far, but I'll let imaginations run wild._

_ Since then it was a game of who could fluster the other most. That led to a foot running up his leg at the dinner table, his wandering hands when we did dishes, a fight over the remote led me straddling him on his chair to get it, and whispered innuendos that numbered in the thousands. That was just at home. Derek decided he was bolder at school where I was not. And every night lead us to the same position, sitting on the floor by our shared vent and one of us would be singing to the other. On more than one occasion, I fell asleep on the floor. The first time Lizzie walked in on me to find me sleeping by the vent, I had to scramble up a lame excuse. Since then, I locked my door at night._

_ Then came graduation. Him threatening not to go scared me. I needed him to go, but I had to behave like normal. Instead, I focused on my speech, clearly blowing it out of proportion like always, freaking out over the smallest detail. Once again, Derek helped me through that. In the end, he ended up going to graduation, making a huge entrance of course. I think he did that so I wouldn't feel so much pressure on my shoulders about my speech. Then we found out about both of us being accepted into University. That "scene" was fun, to say the least._

_ We got through summer with my grandmother fine. We kept having to sneak around to hang out with eachother, but it was worth it. One night he even talked me into going out for a midnight swim. Almost got caught a few times, as usual because my Gran is a lot more perceptive than our parents but we survived unscathed. I ended up turning down that offer I got. I just couldn't see myself leaving Derek. I had already made up my mind to turn it down when I told Derek about it, but the look on his face before I told him my decision broke my heart._

As we reach our apartment and park, Derek reaches over and squeezes my hand. He looks nervous, so I squeeze back. I've gotten pretty good at reading Derek over the last few months. I look at my watch and see it's only 10 AM. I know the movers won't be here until at least 5 pm so I turn to Derek.

"Why don't you unhook the trailer and go find us something to eat. I'll set up the air-matresses and we can eat before we take a nap. The movers won't be here until 5 this evening anyway. You've been driving all night and I know you are hungry too."

"Sure Princess. I'll carry the rest of the stuff in if you grab the pillows." He's not arguing with me or teasing me. He must really be nervous. Hopefully he's not having second thoughts. I've been looking foward to this since that night. I've even kept a calender and marking down the days since we set the time frame.

He grabs the airmatresses and the small tote from the back with our blankets and I grab he pillows and follow him inside. When we reach our door number, he pulls out his keys and with a smirk, opens the door. he tosses the boxes and tote in and grabs the pillows from me, throwing them in the floor. I start to protest, knowing I probably need to vaccuum the floor because of dust. Before I can, he reaches down and sweeps me up bridal style and all protests go out the window and all I can do is laugh.

When we get through the door, he nearly trips over the mess he's made and I can't help but laugh harder.  
"It's what you get for making a mess, Der," I tease and now it's his turn to laugh. He sets me down and we just stand there a moment, just staring at eachother before he nervously wipes his hands on his jeans and looks down, mumbling something about food and being back soon.

After he leaves, I get to work with the set up. I can hardly concentrate with anticipation but I get the beds ready and even set up a little eating area using the tote as a table and a couple pillows as cushions. When I'm done, I sit by the front window, watching for him and as he pulls up into our designated parking spot, I can't help but smile. It's not long until we're sitting down together, eating the pancakes he's brought home for us. Home. I liked the sound of that. I begin talking out a plan with him.

"Derek, I'm thinking. We can take a nap until about one thirty if you like, but then we need to go grocery shopping."

"Can't we just keep getting take-out?" he asks hopefully.

"No, Der, we can't," I resist the urge to roll my eyes, "If you are good in the grocery store, I'll even make your favorite dinner tonight. Home made pizza."

"Really? Alright!" He laughs, "I can deal with grocery shopping, but you promised you'd call the cable company and get it set up too."

"Yeah I figured I could do that tomorrow while you are sleeping in."

"Okay. Sounds fair. I don't plan on waking up before noon tomorrow anyhow. It should be outlawed to be awake before noon."

"Is that why all your classes start at 3pm or later? You know it won't work out like that all the time."  
"Well, I have a couple of classes that start at 9 am and there is one at 8 am in which I shutter to even think about. Who is seriously awake before 8 am?"  
"I am."  
"You are a freak of nature, woman," he jokes. I just smile at him, "Just don't wake me up on days I don't have to be, okay?"  
"Deal," I grin.

"So you set up the beds in the livingroom?" He asks, bewildered. He has syrup on his face, so I toss a napkin at him.  
"Yeah, that way if someone knocks on the door or something we can hear them. Well, _I _will hear them, anyway," I roll my eyes. Right now we're just skirting around the touchy subject with our friendly banter, but I'm dying to just get it overwith.

"Right," he is still trying to get the syrup off his chin and struggling, so I reach over and help him. The moment my napkin touches his face, he freezes and so do I. I guess I did it without even thinking. He starts mumbling about being tired and I agree. Leaving our styrofome take-out containers on the make-shift table, we hurry over to our respective beds, deliberately not looking at eachother. Once we're comfortable, we find ourselves facing eachother.

"Case, I know we agreed to talk about this once we got settled in but..."

"I know. It's been bugging me all day."

"Really?" He asks, bewilderded. Does he doubt me that much? I just nod.

"Case," he starts, sitting up, "What are we going to do?"

"Why are you asking me?" I counter. I'm just as clueless as he is at this point.

"You're the one with the plan. You ALWAYS have a plan."

"Well, we could... I mean, maybe... God, I don't know!" I'm starting to freak out now. I hate not having a plan. He gets out of bed, dragging it next to mine, and sits down. I respond by propping myself up on my arm and he grabs my free hand.

"Case, calm down. It's not life or death if you don't have a plan." I start to calm down.

"Well, maybe we should...do what you do. Wing it." I say, sitting up completely.

"Wing it?" I nod my affirmative, "Okay, then. I suppose we'll just take it as it comes. There's no rulebook anyway. Nobody at school has to know that we are step siblings, right? That takes care of University."

"Mom and George don't have to know anything right away, either." I add, "But what if some people from school know us in University?"

"They won't. I read the list of what people are planning to do after graduation. We are the only two going to this University, thankfully." He says and I breathe a sigh of relief. I mean, I'm not deluded to think we can keep this a secret forever, nor do I want it to be a secret forever. This is why I'm glad nobody knows us. We can be Casey and Derek the couple. Not Casey and Derek the stepsiblings that fight all the time. I see him yawn and lay down, still looking at me. I am not sure why, but I find myself pushing my mattress flat up against his and throwing my blanket over top of him before snuggling into his side, his arms wrapping protectively around me, almost on instinct.

I have so many questions spinning through my head. When did he first realize, why did he act like he hated me, was it as hard for him to ignore me as it was for me? I don't ask any of them, however. I just look up at him and smile a little, our eyes doing the talking for us. 'We don't need words right now. There's plenty of time for that later,' I think as his lips meet mine.

FIN!

AN: OMG WOW. It's DONE! I can't believe it. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it, even though it took me forever to spew out! Thank you so so so so so so so much for sticking with it and reading it. For those who reviewed, thanks twice. I get easily discouraged and your reviews pushed me along.

NOW FOR THE IMPORTANT PART! 

I've been toying with the idea for a sequal. Honestly, I can see this story having a sequal but I am not sure I am the one to write it. SOOOOO... I want to know if anyone is interested in writing a sequal for it. I will be happy to be a soundboard or offer help in any way shape or form. If more than one person is interested, that's fine. Just let me know if you want to/plan on writing something based off of this.

THANKS SO MUCH YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! I love you all and I would send you all a happy face cuppycake if I could but alas, Fanfic has not provided us with that option.

Miss Elf


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